Lost & Found
by Taker Always
Summary: Headed home from a late night of working, Roman discovers someone that will change his life forever. She was lost and he found her. Eventually a 'M' rating...
1. Lost & Found

Author's Note: Hey Everybody! How are you all? I have missed you! :-) This is a Roman & Ashley story. I owe this story to Rainie! I have several other stories in the making, but for some reason I haven't been able to get them forward so you all can read them. Rainie suggested a Roman/Ashley story and once the idea hit... BAM! I could write again. So once this story is finished I'll be doing a Taker/Sara story and then I'll start my series. I'm super excited. I'm super excited about this one as well so please Enjoy!

Love ya all!

P.S. In this story... the current storyline will not be followed. I veered off once reaching Payback. Also Roman has only been married once, but he has no current girlfriend and sadly he has no children. Although his little girl is absolutely adorable!

Chapter One  
Lost & Found

**Thursday May 29, 2014**

It was late. I was tired. I was hungry and I wanted a damn shower like right now. But first I had to carry my tired ass to my rental and to the hotel. Maybe I would just skip eating tonight. I was too damned tired to eat. I was too damned tired to take a shower but I'll be damned to hell if I was going to skip a shower. A hot shower; so hot that I just might burn my skin the fuck off. Or maybe a nice cold one because I was already hot and sweaty. Tonight had been a hard one, but I enjoyed every fucking minute of it.

A noise pulled me from my thoughts and I turned my attention on a dark spot coming from down the alley behind the large building of the Allstate Arena in Rosemont, Illinois. I could easily make out the two very large dumpsters, but it was the figure moving beside it that held my attention. The figure was small, child-like small. That's all I could make out so I walked closer. The closer I got, the more details I could see. It was a girl, nope it was a woman. She was dirty and from the looks of her neck and arms, she had been abused. Her clothes were torn and dirty and she was skinny as hell. And small. She needed a shower and food way more than I did.

I took another step and froze when I kicked an empty soda can, making a bunch of noise as it skidded across the pavement. Her head shot up and my eyes caught hers. I had no idea, but at that moment I was looking into the eyes that would change my life forever.

* * *

**Earlier That Night: **

"Hey!"

I turned at the sound of my teammate's voice, cocking my eyebrow in question.

"Did ya hear? Steph and H wanna see us in their office ASAP." Dean replied, a frown upon his face.

I nodded. "I'm headed there now."

"Headed where?" The third in our group asked as he joined us.

"To H's office to meet with him and Steph." I replied as we continued to walk, already dressed to the nines in our wrestling gear.

Seth grunted. "Me too. What do you think this is about?" He wondered out loud.

Dean and I both shrugged. "Probably about a new story line. Payback is this Sunday and once we kick Evolution's ass, we'll need someone else to fuck with." Dean snickered.

I nodded in agreement, but at the same time my inner thoughts wouldn't let me be too conceited or full of myself. There was nothing written anywhere that stated we would indeed beat Evolution and make history. Dean was just … well hopeful was too nice of a word. He was just so full of himself that he was sure we would snag the win and be victorious. In more ways than one. However I was being realistic. I knew we only had a fifty percent chance of winning so it made a fifty percent chance of us losing. Seth and Dean were overly optimistic and too damn confident. I was confident, but I was the more modest one of our group of three.

I hadn't a clue why WWE put us together. We were three totally different alpha males. Dean was cocky, arrogant and he was an ass most of the time. And to women, he was the number one ass of all assholes. He used women in the worst way and then dumped them just as quickly as he picked them up. They never saw it coming. Seth was a charmer. He charmed women right out their panties and when he left them the next morning, he always had them convinced that they dumped him. He's that damn good. He could talk himself out of a traffic ticket. Hell, I'm pretty sure he could talk himself out of a murder charge. Yes, he was that much of a fucking charmer. I could be a charmer and I could be an ass, but mostly I was just me. I was polite to society and to my bosses. I treated my family with love and respect. And the women that I picked up, knew the score up front. I didn't do relationships or love or happily ever afters. I tried marriage once and it failed. I'll never do it again. My career was first and foremost in my life and it took up a lot of my time. I liked it that way. But I was a man and I needed release. And my hand got old, fast. So I enjoyed women. All of them. Young, old, skinny, fat, tall, short. Women were sensual creatures. They were beautiful, funny, smart. They smelled good and their soft bodies felt amazingly sexy against my hard form. Yes, I loved women. So I didn't treat them like things. I treated them like human beings but they always knew the score.

R&AR&AR&AR&AR&AR&AR&AR&AR&A

"Thank you gentlemen for allowing H and myself to take away your valuable work out time." Steph started, a saccharin sweet smile on her face. I like Steph. She's nice, but she was a ball buster. All men should definitely be afraid of Steph. I did not envy H at all.

"I know you're wondering what you're next storyline will be and I'm anxious to tell you, that you three will become faces of the company." Steph's smile widened at her great news.

We just gap at her. Good guys? Really? The Shield? Could we be the good guys? Did we have in us? I wasn't so sure. Apparently neither did Ambrose or Rollins.

"Good guys? Seriously? Us? We aren't good guys, Steph." Seth flashed her one of those charming smiles of his and I was sure Steph may have melted just a bit.

However, she just nodded in assurance. "I'm sure about this."

H nodded in agreement. "Evolution is going heel and we're going all the way."

I shook my head in confusion. "But isn't that what's already kind of happening?" I questioned.

H nodded while Steph shook her head. "It's going to get worse and you three are going to come to the rescue each and every time."

Dean curled his lip in disgust, making me chuckle. "The Shield doesn't rescue, we invade, we attack."

Steph gave him 'the eye' and his lip returned to normal. Yep, Steph was definitely a ball buster. Thank fuck my balls would never be firmly in her grasp.

"An example," she stressed, her eyes narrowed on Dean. "The Raw after Payback, Evolution will get involved in a match between the Wyatt Brothers and the USOs with John Cena. They will attack the USOs and Cena, helping the Wyatt Brothers cripple them. You three will come out and help the USOs and Cena. That is only the beginning."

"It's gonna be a wild ride, Gentlemen. Be prepared." H grinned.

R&AR&AR&AR&AR&AR&AR&AR&AR&A

Tonight was a house show and it was in Rosemont. Payback would also be hosted in Rosemont. It was rare but it did happen. And it was Thursday night. We had been doing a lot of house shows lately since the WWE Network was created and launched. I was just glad that we were finally finished for the week. Well, until Sunday that is. I was looking forward to Payback. I loved doing the pay-per-view events because anything could happen and something always did. Whether it was back stage or in front of the cameras, pay-per-view events were always crazy.

I said good bye to Dean and Seth and headed towards my rental. It was late. I was tired. I was hungry and I wanted a damn shower like right now. But first I had to carry my tired ass to my rental and to the hotel. Maybe I would just skip eating tonight. I was too damned tired to eat. I was too damned tired to take a shower but I'll be damned to hell if I was going to skip a shower. A hot shower; so hot that I just might burn my skin the fuck off. Or maybe a nice cold one because I was already hot and sweaty. Tonight had been a hard one, but I enjoyed every fucking minute of it.

A noise pulled me from my thoughts and I turned my attention on a dark spot coming from down the alley behind the large building of the Allstate Arena in Rosemont, Illinois. I could easily make out the two very large dumpsters, but it was the figure moving beside them that held my attention. The figure was small, child-like small. That's all I could make out so I walked closer. I had to admit, my curiosity was piqued. The closer I got, the more details I could see. It was a girl. Nope those little curves definitely belonged to a woman. She was dirty-filthy and from the looks of her neck and arms, she had been abused. She had on a ragged pair of jeans so I couldn't make out what state her legs were in. On her feet was a faded pink pair of flip flops. Her clothes were torn and dirty and she was skinny as hell. I could make out her collarbone and the bones in wrists. She was seriously malnourished. She was tiny, maybe topping five foot one or two. Maybe. She needed a shower and she needed food way more than I did.

I took another step towards her and froze when I accidentally kicked an empty soda can, making a bunch of noise as it skidded across the pavement. Her head shot up and my eyes caught hers. She had beautiful chocolate brown eyes. I've always been told that I had beautiful blue eyes, but her brown eyes were damned beautiful. Hers were more caramel colored than chocolate, but right now they were darkened with fear and wariness. She had a small button nose and a pink cupid's bow mouth. Right now her cheeks were sunken in, but I had a feeling once filled out, they would be round, soft, and pink with health.

Yep, she was beautiful and scared to fucking death. I could understand why. She was in a dark alley with a strange man that just crept up on her. I was a big man. And she was definitely small. Fuck, she needed to eat.

I took a step back and held up my hands in an 'I mean no harm' gesture. Her chocolate eyes widened and she swallowed hard. I heard what sounded like a growl and I knew immediately it was her stomach screaming that it wanted food. And damn it, I wanted to feed her.

"Please don't run." I spoke softly, gently. I didn't want to spook her.

She took step back and eyed me warily. She wasn't taking any chances. I felt a spurt of anger shoot through me. Someone and I was guessing a man had done a total number on her. She wasn't going to trust me easily. I had my work cut out for me. So I took a deep breath.

"My name is Roman." Okay so really my name was Joe, but only family and very close friends called me Joe. Not even Dean and Seth called me Joe. Not that I called them by their real names either. We were friends, but we weren't close. "I'm a… um…" Should I tell her I was a professional wrestler? Chances were, I would scare her with that admission, but lying to her wasn't an option. I wanted her to trust me so I had to go with the truth hundred percent of the way.

I cleared my throat. "I'm Roman and I'm a professional wrestler for the WWE."

Her eyes got even wider and she took several steps away from me. Oh yeah, she had definitely been abused. Fuck! How did I approach this shit?

I took another deep breath. "I'm not going to hurt you." I told her softly.

I almost laughed when the expression on her face changed. She was now giving me a 'yeah right' look. Damn, she was adorable. I didn't laugh though. I kept my face neutral.

I tried again. "I'm really not going to hurt you. I don't have any sisters, but if I did, I would hate for them to be out here. I hate that you're out here. It might rain tonight." I replied, looking up at the sky which was clear as hell. Okay, so maybe it wouldn't rain.

Glancing back at the small imp, she was giving me another look. 'Are you serious' was written clearly on her small upturned face. Well, she definitely had a sense of humor and knowing that made me want to smile. It made me want to get to know her.

But she still didn't speak. So I tried again and this time when her stomach growled and she blushed, I grinned. "How about some food, little one? I know a great little place just down the road. It's open all night and they serve the best bacon cheeseburgers. With French fries and a chocolate milkshake."

Those brown eyes widened at the mention of a chocolate milkshake. So I teased her. "I'll even get ya two milkshakes." I offered, hoping she would take the bait.

She swallowed hard and I knew she wanted to say yes, but she still hesitated. So I upped the ante. "And what about a piece of double chocolate cake or cherry cheesecake."

She licked her lips and her stomach growled louder. Pain filled her eyes and I knew then she hadn't eaten in a while. She was struggling. She wanted the food, but she didn't want anything to do with me. I looked towards my rental and then back at her. She was staring at me, her head cocked to the side. She looked deep in thought. Damn, I hope she was leaning towards trusting me. I motioned towards my SUV.

"My rental is an SUV. I like to bike ride sometimes when I've got some down time so I rented a bike. You can sit in the back seat where I can't reach you or hell, I'll even let you drive."

Her eyes widened than narrowed and she shook her head slightly. I mentally cursed. Damn it, she needed to eat. "You need to eat, little one. Please let me feed you."

She licked her lips, took a small step in my direction and nodded. I felt something in my chest give away and I realized it was relief. She was going to come with me. Thank God. She took another step and then another until she finally reached my side. She was still a good twenty feet from me, but she was coming with me so I was okay with the distance. We walked in silence towards my SUV. I beeped the lock to open it and without a word she climbed into the back seat and shut the door. I grinned as I got into the driver's side. My grin widened when I turned and saw that she was way in the back, where the storage was. I gave her a grin and her eyes narrowed.

The drive to the diner was done in silence, but I was sure if I listened closely, I could hear the gears grinding in that pretty little head of hers. When I pulled into the diner, her eyes went wide and filled with tears. She angrily wiped them away, but I could tell she was happy that we were actually at a place that held food. Grinning, I got out and opened the door for her. She got out on the opposite side. Which only made me chuckle. She was definitely feisty and she wasn't trusting at all. I was proud of her for that.

We entered the diner and was immediately seated by an older lady with flaming red hair, bright blue eyes and a huge grin on her face.

"Well, well, well, my grandsons are gonna just hate me when they find out I got to serve Thee Roman Reigns. I'm gonna be their favorite grandma from now on. I'm Sophia and I am just tickled to be your waitress than evening." Her eyes causally glanced over at my companion and I saw the sympathy in her eyes.

I gave her a huge grin to distract her and she blushed. "Follow me."

She led us to a corner booth and handed us menus as we sat down. "What can I get ya to drink?" She asked politely.

"Two chocolate milkshakes."

Sophia winked. "Coming right up." She flashed another smile before walking away.

I had kept my eyes away from my companion for a reason and now that we were alone, I couldn't not look at her anymore. I readied myself for the shock, but I still sucked in a sharp breath at the sight of her face. Her eyes were a beautiful caramel-chocolate brown, and although they were clear and bright, they were filled with pain, anger, and fear. She was tired as well. I hated to say it, but she looked just tired of living. That broke my heart. Around her right eye was a faded bruise. Her cheeks were not only sunken in, but dirty and bruised as well. She had a split lip and dried blood on left ear. But it was her neck that had me seeing red. The hand shaped bruises clearly meant that someone in her near past had tried to kill her. That didn't sit well with me.

What also surprised me was that she was studying me. I couldn't help but wonder if she liked what she saw. She also hadn't touched her menu or said a damn word. I wanted to hear her voice.

I gestured towards her menu. "You know what you want?" I asked and she nodded. "Bacon cheeseburger with French fries, right?" I teased her with a smile. Her eyes narrowed but she nodded again. I sighed. "What's your name?" She didn't answer, she just blinked those caramel eyes. "Do you talk?" I asked hopeful. She nodded and licked her lips. Before I could ask another question, our waitress, Sophia returned with our chocolate milkshakes.

"Here ya go. Do you know what you want to order or do you need a few more minutes?" She questioned sweetly.

"We need two bacon cheeseburgers with French fries and an extra order of onion rings." I told her.

She nodded with a smile. "Coming right up." She took off again.

I once again focused my attention on my caramel eyed beauty. "What's your name, little one?"

She sighed, licked her lips, and took a deep breath. She was definitely struggling with the trust thing.

"Why?"

Her voice was so soft and undeniably sexy that it took me a minute to focus on what she said… or asked. Why? Why what?

"Why what, little one? Why do I want to know your name?"

She shook her head. "Why do you want to feed me?" She questioned softly. "What do you want from me?"

I cocked my head. It now occurred to me that her voice was hoarse. The bruises are her neck were much more recent than I thought. I took a deep breath.

"What makes you think I want anything?" I asked honestly.

Her tongue peeked out once again, gliding along her lower lip. "Because they always do."


	2. Homeless, Hungry, & Hurting

Author's Note: Thank you to those who gave me reviews, favorited this story, myself, and added us to your alert lists. That means so much! I hope you all enjoy this chapter. My husband is still in the hospital, and probably will be for a while but I am going to try and update as much as I possibly can. Thanks Again!

Chapter Two  
Homeless, Hungry & Hurting

**Thursday May 29, 2014**

She shook her head. "Why do you want to feed me?" She questioned softly. "What do you want from me?"

I cocked my head. It now occurred to me that her voice was hoarse. The bruises are her neck were much more recent than I thought. I took a deep breath.

"What makes you think I want anything?" I asked honestly.

Her tongue peeked out once again, gliding along her lower lip. "Because they always do."

I took a deep breath and motioned towards her chocolate shake. "I don't want anything from you. I just want you to eat. You need to eat."

She watched me closely as she grabbed her shake, fixed her straw and took a drink. Watching the straw slide against her tongue created imagines in my head that had no business being there and I was thankful when Sophia arrived, bringing us our burgers and fries. I took my eyes off my companion to cover my burger with catsup, mustard, lettuce, tomato, and just a hint of hot sauce. I enjoyed spicy things. I brought the burger to my mouth and my eyes immediately widened in shock when they land on the girl in front of me. She had almost completely inhaled that whole burger and half her fries. She didn't put anything on it. No catsup, no mustard or lettuce and tomato. She just shoved it in her mouth and went to town. Holy shit! Damn, she really was starving.

I finished chewing and sat my burger done. She had yet to look at me as she polished off her burger and went to work on her fries.

"When was the last time you ate, little one?" I asked lightly.

She shrugged, but stayed silent. I took a deep breath. I guess it was a good thing I was a patient man.

"What's your name, Sweetheart?" I tried that angle again.

She licked her lips, finishing her fries and eying my mine. I pushed my plate towards her and her eyes widened.

"You… don't… want it?"

I shook my head. "I can order another one. If you're hungry, please eat it."

She grabbed the plate and yanked it towards her fast. I guess she was afraid I would take it away from her, but there was no way in hell I would do that to her. She needed to eat.

With a mouth full of food, she spoke. "Ashley. My name is Ashley."

I smiled. I didn't care that she just spoke around a mouth full of food, I knew her name now. "Hi Ashley. I'm Roman."

Her eyes met mine and she slowly nodded. "Thank you for feeding me."

"It's definitely my pleasure, little one."

It was silent for a few minutes as I watched Ashley inhale my bacon cheeseburger, my fries and my chocolate shake. She then nibbled on the onion rings. I had motioned for the waitress and when she came over, I ordered a large piece of chocolate cake and a large piece of cherry cheesecake. And I ordered another burger and shake for myself. I looked over to see her watching me with a light in her eyes I hadn't seen before.

I grinned at her and she blushed, bowing her head. That made me chuckle. "Don't eat too fast, Sweetheart." I warn her gently. She nodded and stuffed another onion ring in her mouth. Sophia then dropped off the cakes and my burger and this time it was myself that got busy eating. I pushed the chocolate cake towards her and her eyes went wide. The cake, she took her time eating. One forkful at a time. It was kind of erotic how she was eating that cake and I wanted to slap myself. She didn't need my dirty thoughts. And besides, I wanted answers. Badly.

"Good?"

She nodded, eating another forkful. "How long has it been since you've eaten a good meal?" She shrugged. I took a couple of bites of my burger before I tried again. "How about this, I give you a time frame and you shake or nod. Okay?" She looked up at me and slowly nodded. "Good. A day?" I received a shake. "Two days?" Another shake. "Four days?" She shook her head again. I took a deep breath. "A week?" I wasn't able to keep the anger out of my voice.

She finished her second shake. "It's been eight days since I've eaten anything. I think anyway. I'm not so sure of the days anymore."

I battled with my anger, but managed to hold it in check. "That's a long time, Ashley. A very long time." I stated.

She shrugged. "I'm okay." She was far from okay. She needed to gain about thirty pounds, maybe more. "Do you have any family?" I finally asked after a few bites of my burger.

She shrugged again, acting nonchalantly, but I saw the brief flash of panic in her eyes. "Don't we all have family somewhere?"

My eyes narrowed. "How old you are?" I asked suddenly and a little more force to my voice than I wanted.

She narrowed those caramel eyes on me and I saw the anger flashing. "How old are you?" She shot back.

I grinned. "I'm twenty-nine, little girl. You?"

"Twenty-one." She replied back. I cocked an eyebrow, letting her know I didn't believe her. She sighed. "Fine, I just turned twenty. Honest."

I knew my next question wasn't going to go over well, but I was going to ask it anyway. "How did you get the bruises, Sweetheart?"

Immediately panic and then fear filled her eyes and she stopped eating. Maybe I should have waited until she finished eating first. I wanted… no I needed her to eat. She sighed, meeting my eyes.

"I knew you wanted something. They always do." She stated before standing to leave. Now that I would not let happen.

"Sit down." I ordered, my voice leaving no room for argument. And she didn't. I hated the fear in her eyes, but she quickly sat back down.

I took a deep breath. "I'm curious, yes. I want to know what happened because no one deserves bruises like that ones you have on your neck, face, and arms. I want to find the bastard who dare put their hands on you, on a woman so small she probably couldn't do much damaged even if she tried, and I want to beat the fucker within an inch of his pathetic life."

Her eyes widened and then she blinked. Shock was screaming on her face and I was hoping she was softening just a little bit towards me. Her next words blew that all to hell.

Shrugging, she grabbed her fork and started back on her cheesecake. "Trusting you will probably get me killed, but what do I gotta lose, right?"

I let out a sigh. "I'm not going to hurt you, Ashley. I promise you that."

Her fork dropped again and she met my eyes head on. There was a lot of emotions swimming around on her pretty face, uncertainty, fear, curiosity, wariness, and I was sure I saw a little hope in there too.

"Don't give me promises and don't lie to me. Men are nothing but trouble. They're liars and jerks and they're only out to help themselves. So fine, you wanna know my life story, I'll give it to ya. Well, the gist of it, but don't bother lying to me and I don't ever want to hear the word promise again. It's crap."

I didn't know what to say to that. She had definitely been dealt a shitty hand in life. I wouldn't lie to her, I wouldn't hurt her and I would never promise her something if I couldn't deliver, but something told me that if I tried to make her believe that, she would leave and I would never know.

"Okay. You got it." I told her.

She nodded and reached once again for her fork. "My dad died when I was a little. My mom married Jet when I was twelve. He slapped me around all the time. When I was sixteen, he crept into my room and tried to…" She took a deep breath and gave herself a shake. "I kneed him in his junk and took off. I waited until the next day when I knew they were at work and snuck in to the house to get a few things. I haven't been back since. I've been living on the streets since I was sixteen."

I had a feeling there was more to the 'slapping around' thing, but for now I let it go. "Those bruises on your neck are fresh, Sweetheart."

She nodded and tears filled her eyes. "Apparently after I left, my mom went crazy." She rolled her eyes. "Well, more crazy than she already was. She buried herself in more drugs and alcohol. Heavier drugs and alcohol. She died when I was eighteen. That was first time Jet found me living on the streets. He beat the crap out of me and almost managed to rape me, but a bunch of teenagers interrupted him. I run, but he continues to find me. And every time he does, he beats the crap out of me in anger, I guess. The last time was a few days ago."

"What does he want with you, Ashley? Why won't he leave you alone?"

A tear fell silently down her cheek and I fought the urge to pull her into my arms. I knew she wouldn't care for it and I didn't want a knee to my balls.

"He wants a replacement for my mom. I look almost exactly like her."

I inhaled sharply and nodded. I wanted to kill this Jet, but I knew showing my anger to Ashley wasn't a good idea. Thank fuck I had a way to release my pent up anger and aggressions. I would have to call up Dean or Seth and see if they wanted to spar a little tomorrow.

"How come you ran away? How come you didn't tell your mom what Jet tried to do?" I asked, curious.

She finished all her food and her second milkshake (or was it my first) and once again met my eyes. "She didn't care if he slapped me around, burnt me with cigarettes, squeezed my breasts, or slapped my butt, so why would she care if he raped me?"

My eyes widened in shock. "Damn, Sweetheart, I'm sorry."

She shrugged. Again. "She liked her drugs and she loved her alcohol. She was a good mother, she was just scared to death of Jet."

I nodded. "So she always used drugs and alcohol?" I asked softly.

She nodded. "After my dad died, she couldn't handle being without him. So she lost herself in drugs and alcohol. That's how she met Jet. He was a major crack head."

"How did your dad die?"

Tears filled her caramel depths and I instantly felt bad. Damn it, I didn't want her to cry. "He was a Marine. He died in Iraq."

My eyes softened and I reached out and touched a finger to her cheek. "Oh Sweetheart, I'm sorry."

She backed away from my touch, but I still felt it down to my soul. She was someone special, I could feel it. I didn't want to let her go, but I hadn't a clue how to keep her from running the minute she finished eating. I had to think of something and quick.

"Don't touch me. Ever." She bit out between clenched teeth.

I held my hands up in front of me. "Won't happen again." _For now_. I added silently. There was just something about her that I didn't understand, but I was drawn to her.

She nodded and went back to her cake and shake. She was definitely going to be a tough shell to crack. I watched her as she took her time, savoring each bite of the cherry cheesecake. My eyes once again skimmed her small form. Her hair was dirty, hanging around her shoulders in strings. She was definitely covered in bruises, her face, cheeks, neck, and I could see the faded coloring of bruising around her collarbone, peeking out from beneath her faded and ragged grey t-shirt. Bruises marred her arms, but I didn't see any sign of track marks so I didn't think she was a drug addict. The bones around her collarbone and wrists jutted out, screaming malnutrition. I could also make a distinct pattern of bruising around her wrists. She had been handcuffed at one point in her past and it was recent. So drugs or prostitution? My stomach turned at the thought of either, but I couldn't fathom this young woman selling her body.

"You into drugs?" I asked casually.

Her head lifted and her eyes met mine before they dropped to my chest and scanned along my shoulders and down to my upper arms, one at a time before meeting my eyes once again. I fought the urge to shiver at the caress of her eyes. Damn, I need help.

She cocked her head. "Are you on steroids?" She blinked, her voice normal but I could feel the acid dripping from the question.

I gave her one of my more charming grins. "No, Sweetheart, I am not. It's illegal in my business and if I ever tested positive, I would lose my job." Her eyes narrowed and I flexed my biceps. "I work my ass off for these muscles, little one."

She rolled her eyes, not impressed. "I don't take drugs."

I nodded towards her wrists. "You've got bruises from handcuffs, Sweetheart. You've been arrested. For what?" My stomach churned once again at the thought of prostitution.

Her hands jerked and she hid them in her lap. "You don't know everything." She spoke softly and she wouldn't meet my eyes.

My chest tightened. Could I be wrong about her being arrested? Anything was possible, but if she hadn't been arrested than…

"Ashley, look at me." I demanded.

She took her time but her eyes finally met mine.

"Tell me truth… Have you ever been raped? By anyone?" I asked, keeping my voice soft and low.

She shook her head. "No. I've never been raped. I've been lucky."

She calls this... lucky? Wow! "But you were restrained by handcuffs? Correct?"

She nodded. "But I don't wanna talk about it." She hissed harshly. But the pain in her eyes took the bite out of her words. She was hurting. I couldn't help but wonder if emotion pain was the only one she was going through. Was she hurt elsewhere? Did those bruises hurt? Could she have internal bleeding? Shit, I hoped not.

She suddenly jerked to her feet. "I need to go."

I forced myself to stay seated. She hadn't ran yet because I knew deep down she didn't want to leave. "No, you don't _need_ to go."

She licked her lips and glanced around the restaurant. "I need to find a place for tonight, away–"

"You can stay with me." I cut her off. I didn't even want her to finish that sentence.

She immediately shook her head. "You've given me enough and I told you I wasn't sleeping with you."

I sighed. "Sweetheart, sit down." I spoke softly and gently, but the order was there.

And she didn't defy me. She sat.

"I've got a hotel room. It's nothing fancy because I don't need fancy, but it's got two beds and a bathroom. You could use a hot shower and a warm bed or a cool bed since it's so damn hot. No ulterior motives, little one. You need some real rest. Let me provide that."

"I could have a shower?" She asked, her voice so low I barely heard it.

"Yes. A long one if you want it." I replied.

"And I could brush my teeth?" My heart was breaking at the sound of desperation in her voice.

"Of course you can brush your teeth, Sweetheart."

She nibbled her lower lip, her eyes filled with hope and wanting and a little bit of pain and wariness. She wanted to say yes, she was dying to say yes.

"What do you say, little one? Do you want a hot shower, a clean bed, and a toothbrush?"

She opened her mouth and…


	3. Toothbrushes, Deals,& Nightmares in Hell

Author's Note: I want to thank everyone for the reviews on chapter 2. And I want to thank you all so very much for the prayers and well wishes. The last month and a half has not been easy and still isn't easy. I'm still struggling day to day and most days I just stay numb. It's easier that way. A lot has changed for me and still changing. My husband's death is still blurry for me and his family. A lot is still up in the air. I don't know how much writing I'll be doing but at times, it does help me. But I can not promise regular updates. Please just bear with me. And I totally feel out of practice with my writing so I hope it's all okay.

Thank you again. So very much. You all are so very amazing.

Chapter Three  
Toothbrushes, Deals, & Nightmares From Hell

**Friday Morning May 30, 2014 – A little after midnight**

I let out a sigh of relief as I sank down into the nearest chair I could find. She was finally asleep, curled up on one side of the bed. I hadn't thought she could have gotten any smaller, but she proved me wrong. Curled up in the bed, she looked to be about the size of a golden retriever. Okay, so maybe not the best of analogies, but it was all I could come up with this late at night. Or early in the morning, depending on how I looked at it. And it was late for me. I was tired. I was now completely exhausted, but instead of going to sleep myself, I found myself watching her.

After we left the diner, we stopped at Dairy Queen where I bought her a blizzard and a banana split. Her beautiful eyes widened when I handed her both desserts and told her to dig in. She ate the banana split first. But not in the traditional way. She took the banana out of the ice cream and ate that first. She then mixed the remaining ice cream together like soup and ate it with a spoon. It was one of the cutest things I had ever seen. Until she ate the blizzard. Now that was the cutest thing I had ever seen. She ate the turtle sundae blizzard with such gusto that I wanted to go back and buy her another one. She dipped her fingers in the sticky concoction and sucked her fingers cleaned. It was adorable and sexy as hell and it made me so hard, I was struggling to sit still, my pants were pulled so tight across my dick. I was struggling with that at the moment, but I knew it would have to be addressed eventually.

By the time we made it to the hotel, she was almost finished with the blizzard. She abandoned the remainder to take a shower and brush her teeth. Once I heard the shower turn on, I left the hotel and went back to the Wal-Mart we had passed and bought several items. A new toothbrush, girly shampoo and body wash (for the next time she took a shower), several pairs of pajamas, two pairs of shorts, a handful of shirts and a pair of jeans and a pair of tennis shoes. Oh and a brush. I also picked out a package of underwear and some socks. I just guessed on most of the sizes, but I skipped over the bras deliberately. I was sure she wasn't more than a 'B' cup, but she was small so I knew she could pull off the braless look easily. And being a man, I would reap the braless look as well.

I made it back to the hotel and she was still in the shower. I wasn't surprised. In fact I wanted her to enjoy herself and take as long as she wanted. I knocked on the door loudly before opening it a crack, telling her that I was coming in with clean clothes and the toothbrush. I walked out as quickly as I walked in. She came out thirty minutes later wearing the matching pajama set I had picked out. The top was a dark blue tank with a kitten in the middle and the shorts matched in color and were adorned with the same black kitten. They were just a bit too big, but that wasn't what I noticed.

She cleaned up well. Her hair matched her eyes which was an odd thing to notice, but I did. The chocolate locks were highlighted with caramel streaks. And since I'm pretty sure she hadn't been to a hair salon lately, that hair color was natural. I bet other women would pay huge bucks for hair like hers. The baby fine locks fell just passed her shoulders in curly waves. Her caramel chocolate eyes were even brighter and still filled with wariness. She looked a lot younger than she did before her shower and she was sexier than I had originally thought.

She was petite. Her feet were tiny, I could probably wrap my hand around her calves and my fingers would more than likely overlap. Her thighs were slim, her belly flat, her hips gave out a tiny flare before leading to a very trim waist. She definitely needed to eat a lot more. More calories for sure. Her breasts were small, but they were perky and I was going to take a wild guess here and say they were probably perfect as well. Her neck was graceful, leading to a heart shaped face with a cupid's bow mouth and a tiny button nose. She was every man's walking wet dream and the girl next door wrapped all up in one small sexy package. What in the hell had I gotten myself into? That was all that was floating around in my brain since she came out of the bathroom, curled up in the bed, and finally passed out.

But with her shower and clean clothes came the awful truth. She was covered in bruises in all different stages. They covered her arms from her wrists to her shoulders. They enveloped her legs from her ankles and disappeared underneath the pajama shorts. Her neck held the darkest bruise of all and was in the shape of a very large male hand. Not as large as mine, but still pretty damn big. I'm sure the bruises covered other parts of her body as well, but unless I told her strip to check out her back and stomach, I wouldn't find out. Not yet anyway. And the one thing I noticed that not only pissed me off, but confused the shit out of me was the size and shape of the bruises. Some of them were just indescribable shapes where it might have been a fist that hit her or a shoe or some other object that her abuser just happen to pick up. But some of them were fists and hand prints and some were shoe prints and all of them were different sizes. She had more than one abuser. Now it became a little clearer why she was running.

It also pissed me off when she curled up in the bed. She was in the upper right hand side of the bed, curled up as small as she could make herself and far as possible away from me. I had noticed that immediately. She would soon get over that. I knew she wouldn't agree. At first. But I was good at winning people over and I would do it with her. I wasn't leaving her behind when I left this city. There was no way in hell I could. I just didn't know how I was going to tell her this. She had avoided even looking at me when she walked out of the bathroom. However, she fell asleep quickly and since I had been moving around and making noise, I knew she was in a deep sleep. This comforted me a little because I knew in some form she knew she could trust me.

I just turned everything off and laid down when the first blood curdling scream ripped through the small hotel room. I bolted up from my current position and turned the light on. Ashley was now thrashing across the bed, scream after scream tearing through her sore throat. I crossed to her side quickly and pulled her into my arms, which was no easy feat. She fought hard against me, kicking and punching anything she could reach. I tried calling her name and shaking her, but she only screamed louder. Her screams were becoming lower, raspier and I knew she would eventually tire herself out and stop but listening to it and watching her struggle with whatever demons she was going through was slashing through my heart.

After a few minutes, she finally settled against my chest in a silent sleep. I could honestly say I was surprised I didn't have management knocking down our door, but as I leaned against the headboard of the bed and tucked Ashley against me, I was glad they were leaving us alone. Maybe the hotel was just empty and no one heard her painful screams. I had never been much of a lovey-dovey, touchy-feely type of a man so the emotions coursing through me were a little foreign to me, but something told me this was only the beginning.

R&AR&AR&AR&AR&AR&AR&AR&A

"So you want pancakes, bacon, eggs, sausage, or hash browns or just cold cereal?" I asked Ashley as she came out of the bathroom. She hadn't been up long, but she had been in the bathroom since she woke up. I was pretty sure she was brushing her teeth, taking a shower and completely avoiding me.

She cocked her head at me and frowned. Even with a frown on her face she was beautiful. She put on the new jeans I bought and the simple pink t-shirt. She had tennis shoes on her feet and she was braless. Thank God for small titties and tight t-shirts and God forgive me for my perverted ways.

"What?" I questioned.

She licked her lips and my eyes couldn't help but followed the small pink tip. Damn, she was sexy as hell. And I was pretty sure I was going to hell. Yep.

"Can I have all of it?" She asked me in a small, timid voice.

I grinned, my dimples showing. "Of course you can, little one. In fact you can have it all plus two of each."

She sighed and fiddled with the hem of her t-shirt. She wanted to say something but she was scared. I could tell. Maybe she totally wanted to thank me in such a wicked carnal way. Yeah, I was so going to hell.

I shook my head. "What's wrong, sweetheart?"

She looked up at me and met my eyes. "Thank you." She spoke softly.

"For?" I wasn't sure what she was thanking me for but I didn't really care. She deserved some happiness in her life.

"For the shower, the toothbrush, for a safe place to sleep, for the clothes, the food, and for… just… well… everything."

I nodded. She hadn't mentioned last night or the nightmares so I wasn't even sure if she knew she had them and I definitely wasn't sure if she knew I held her until the wee hours of morning and only put her down when she started to stir. I didn't want her to wake up in my arms and throw any trust I've built with her out of the window.

"You're welcome, Ashley. Trust me when I say it's been my pleasure."

That made her frown but her only reply was a simple nod. Something told me she wanted to say something else. So I waited her out. Or I at least tried to wait her out, but I was getting impatient and I was hungry. And I really wanted to feed her again.

"You ready to go eat?" I asked, hoping to pull her out of her thoughts.

"I should really go."

I nodded. "Yes we should go eat." I replied knowing full well that wasn't what she was talking about.

She shook her head and backed up a step. "I need to get out of town." Her voice shook and I bet if I looked closely enough she would be too.

I sighed and took a step toward her. "Let's go eat breakfast first. Then we'll talk about you running, okay?"

Her stomach grumbled and she blushed. I chuckled softly. "See, your stomach agrees with me."

I had packed her clothes with mine, her dirty clothes with mine as well. She had so little and although the jeans and shirt she had been wearing were almost see through, I couldn't bring myself to throw them away. With my bags in hand, together we walked to my rental and climbed in. She sat in the back seat again. I should have seen it as a step back, but I didn't. She was wary and with her past, she had every reason to be. I drove to the same diner as the night before and we were seated in a corner booth away from prying eyes.

I ordered two heaping plates of food with chocolate milk to drink. While we waited for our food, I decided to ask a few more questions.

"You said you were twenty, right?"

She nodded.

"When do you turn twenty-one?"

She tensed and I frowned. What the hell?

"In a couple of months. What about you?" She asked cautiously.

"May twenty-fifth." I replied.

"How old will you be?" She asked.

I was pretty sure I had already told her my age but I repeated it. "I'll be thirty."

She nodded and yawned, trying to hide it behind her hand. That made me grin. Her eyes narrowed on me before turning away and scanning the restaurant. Her body language was telling me she wasn't open to conversation so I waited until after our food came and she had eaten half of it before I spoke.

"You like bacon, huh?" I teased. That was the first thing she had eaten on her plate.

She shrugged, but stayed quiet.

I shook my head. Normally, I couldn't get a girl to shut the hell up, now I couldn't get this one to speak one damn word. And the fact that I wanted her to and she wasn't was driving me nuts. So I tried something I knew would get a response.

"I want you to come with me, little one, when I leave this city."

She looked up at me in shock. "What?"

My gaze never wavered. "You heard me. You're running, right? What better way to keep running than to keep moving. I travel from city to city, rarely staying in one place for long. I have to get a hotel room anyway so you can stay with me. You don't eat that much so won't cost much more. And besides you can help me with my schedule and do laundry for me."

Her fork still paused mid-air and her mouth parted in surprise, she stared at me. "Why?" She asked softly.

"Because I hate laundry and my organization skills suck."

She shook her head. "Why me? Why do you want me to come with you?"

I took a deep breath and lowered my voice. "You're running, Ashley and by all the different size bruises covering that little body of yours, my guess is you're running from more than one person. And I'm also guessing that I could sit here and talk to you until I turn into a smurf and you won't talk about it to me or anyone else. So you need to keep running. You stay in one spot too damn long, whoever is looking for you is going to find you and beat the shit out of you again. I would rather have that not happen. You're too damned small and you don't eat enough. One more brutal beating and it just might kill you, little girl. I don't want that."

She continued to stare at me, her fork finally in her plate, her food mostly gone. She started to shake her head slowly and I resisted the urge to roll my eyes.

"Come on, Ashley. What do you have to lose by going with me? I'm not going to hurt you."

"Can I make a few rules if I decide to go?" Her voice whisper soft, like she was afraid of what I would say.

I took a calming breath, thankful she was actually going to agree and I knew she would once I agreed to everything she wanted. And I would.

"Of course."

She licked her lips and I inwardly groaned. This was going to be torture for me. Oh well, it would be sweet torture.

"If you want me to help keep you organized and do your laundry, I'm okay with that. In fact it's the only way I'll go with you."

I nodded in reply. "Okay. But…" I knew there was a butt there somewhere.

"Would it be okay if you like paid me ten dollars a day with room and board included. But only on the days that I actually do something."

Okay… so maybe I wouldn't agree to everything. "Ten dollars a day isn't enough for my schedule. At times it can be so crazy and busy and I fuck it up often. So let's make it twenty dollars a day."

Her teeth chewed on her lower lip before she finally nodded. "Okay, but only on the days that I handle any part of your schedule."

"Deal. What else?"

"I pay for my food."

"No." I didn't agree to that and I never would.

"Yes." She argued.

"No." I repeated.

Her eyes narrowed. "Yes." She was determined, I'll give her that.

"No, little girl." I replied back, my voice steel. I saw a shiver go through her body but I didn't see any fear in her eyes. Uh? I wonder what that was about.

"Why?"

"Because you don't eat much so it won't cost much to feed you and because well, I said so."

She sighed. "Fine."

I grinned. Good thing she didn't fight me on that too hard. "What else?"

She swallowed hard and she lowered her eyes. This should be interesting. I had a feeling I knew what she was going to say. That is if she ever worked up the courage to say it.

"Whatever it is, Sweetheart, I'm sure I'll agree." For now.

She took a very deep breath. "No touching or other… stuff."

I cocked an eyebrow. "Other stuff?" She nodded in confirmation. I didn't really want to promise that I wouldn't touch her. I wanted to touch her so I changed my wording. "I won't hurt you, Ashley. You have my word on that."

She accepted that just as I hope she would.

R&AR&AR&AR&AR&AR&AR&AR&AR&AR&A

She came out of the bathroom an hour after she entered. This time she was wearing a blue and purple plaid pajama set. Another tank top and another pair of shorts. Freshly clean and scrubbed. And once again looking fucking adorable and sexy as hell. Was that even possible? To be adorable and sexy at the same time. On her, it worked.

I watched as she ran her tongue over her teeth. Damn there was something about that fucking tongue.

"I love being able to brush my teeth." She exclaimed. She wasn't smiling. She never smiled. I was going to have to change that.

I grinned at her. "How many times did you brush your teeth?" I asked, seriously interested.

She gave a small shrug. "Three or four times."

My grin widened. "How many times, little one?"

She sighed. "Five." She replied as she settled into the bed.

That made me laugh. "Glad to know your teeth are clean."

She nodded, her face serious. "I know."

That only made me laugh harder. She scowled and ignored me, flipping through channels as I continue to laugh on my way to the bathroom. As I entered, I inhaled deeply and shuddered with arousal at the smell of honey, Ashley's new shampoo and ripe berries, her new body wash. If those scents were reeking havoc on me just from the bathroom, I was fucked once I smelled them on her. I sighed and stepped into the shower. As I soaped, showered, shampooed, and brushed, I thought about our day. It was actually more successful than I had originally thought it would be. Ashley helped me straighten my schedule out, I went to a radio interview and then we went to lunch before heading towards a charity event that was casual. Since it was for kids, Ashley didn't mind slipping in and helping out. She talked to the kids and read them stories but I never once saw her smile. After that we ate dinner and I took her shopping for a few more things. She didn't like it but when I used the same voice I had in the diner, she shivered and agreed. I didn't know what that meant, but for some reason I liked it.

I also bought myself a few pairs of pajama pants seeing how I couldn't sleep naked with Ashley around. Not yet.

I sighed as I opened the bathroom door. I'm seriously surprised God hasn't struck me down with lightening. I was a terrible fucking person. And a man. And a pervert. A perverted man. I came out of the bathroom and caught sight of Ashley sound asleep in the same spot as the night before, curled up in that same tight ball, honey and berries still in the air. Who could blame me for being a perverted man? She was sexy as hell. Even with the bruises.

And that's why I needed to be struck with lightening.

I turned off the television and settled down in the other bed. In a matter of seconds, Ashley started to scream.

The screams continued well into the morning.


	4. Bruises & Back Up

Author's Note: I know this short. But it's been awhile and I wanted to get a chapter out there. I also wanted to try and individually thank every one who has sent me a message, review, or pm during this difficult time, but unfortunately my computer is acting up. But I will get there. And also... my head hasn't been in the game since I lost my husband, but I am trying. I need to focus more on my stories and my characters than anything. So... while my head still isn't quite there, I am going to try and start my new series. The first in the series will be a Taker story. It's totally off the wall and different, but I'm looking forward to it.

And I haven't forgotten any of my stories either. I will get to them. I just wanna keep my mind busy and my new series will do that.

So please enjoy! And thank you so much. Y'all mean a lot to me!

Chapter Four  
Bruises and Back Up

**Monday June 2, 2014- Early Morning**

"You completely suck at this, Ro."

I stopped what I was doing and turned to look at her. "Ro?"

She peeked at me out of the corner of her eye and shrugged. "Roman is too much of a mouthful. I was tired of saying it. Ro is shorter and easier to remember."

That earned her a frown. "Easier to remember?" It's barely more than one syllable, little girl."

She shrugged again. "It's two actually. _RO_-man. See." She held up two fingers. "Two."

I decided to change the subject. She would win the argument. She always would. She was too cute to not agree. "So what do I suck at?" I asked.

She nodded towards the screen. "Your schedule. You've double booked yourself more than once."

I sighed heavily and sat down on the bed across from her. "Can you fix it?"

She nodded slowly as if she wasn't entirely sure. "I probably can but it's probably going to take away your only day off."

I swore and she flinched. Then I swore for another reason altogether. I hated when she flinched around me. She didn't do it often. Only when I made sudden and quick moves or when I got visibly angry. I took a deep breath and stood up. She flinched again, waiting for me to lash out at her. I knew that's what she was waiting for. I sighed and walked to the window.

Wednesday was my only day off but if I had to give it up I only had myself to blame. "Well if that's the case, I've only got myself to blame, sweetheart."

I turned just in time to see her physically relax at my words. She would eventually understand that I would never hurt her, but I knew it was going to take some time. Maybe more than I was ready for. It had only been days since I met her, but she was under my skin in the worst way possible or maybe it was for the best way possible. I was still unsure at this time. But for now we had other matters to get to.

"We need to get to the laundry mat to get started on those clothes. Got to be at the arena early."

Ashley nodded, shutting down the computer. "I'll get your schedule straightened out while we're at Raw."

I nodded in agreement. I told her yesterday I wasn't leaving her by herself at the hotel that she was coming with me to Raw. She however, didn't put up much of a fight. I didn't get why but I wasn't complaining.

I grabbed the bag full of our dirty clothes. "I'm taking this to the truck. I'll be right back." I didn't wait for her response before walking out the door. I loaded the bag in the truck before heading back inside. Ashley wasn't in the room and I frowned. I didn't hear the shower so I knocked once on the bathroom door before opening the door and getting the shock of my life.

She was perfect. From head to toe, she was absolutely perfect. Except for the bruises that covered her body. Her caramel-chocolate eyes were wide with shock and fear, her mouth dropped open in surprise. I couldn't move and neither could she. All I could do was drink my fill and hope like hell she wouldn't hate me in the end. She was pink all over, a blush taking over her natural paleness. The bruise around her neck was still there but fading. Her breasts were small but perky with small pink nipples. Hand shaped bruises surrounded those small globes and my fists clenched. My eyes traveled down ward to her flat stomach which a boot print marred. That was definitely the darkest bruise she had and it looked ugly. My jaw tightened in anger, but my eyes kept moving. The small patch of caramel-chocolate colored hair covered the most innocent part of her was also marred by a bruise. I couldn't make the shape from here but I knew I didn't need to. Another boot print. My jaw and fists both flex tightly from anger. Hand shaped bruises cover her upper thigh, deep and dark. My eyes close in sickness. What bastard could do this to any woman, but one this small?

I opened my eyes to find Ashley's head bowed and her eyes closed. She was ashamed and embarrassed. She didn't need to be. She was perfect.

"Sweetheart, turn around." I gently asked. She swallowed and shook her head. "Ashley, turn around." I said once again, a little rougher.

"No." It was first word she had spoken but I didn't care for it.

"Turn around, Little girl." I used the voice I had used in the diner and it didn't disappoint me. She shivered, but she turned around. Bad decision on my part. I inhaled sharply. The only thing that didn't upset me was her perfect little heart shaped ass. But the rest of her was covered in dark bruises, including that sweet ass. I couldn't even make out where one started and the other ended. There was just too damn many. I reached out and touched the small of her back and she flinched. I stepped back.

My voice hard and unyielding, I spoke evenly. "If I ever meet the bastard or _bastards_ that did this to you, I'm going to jail, Sweetheart because I'm killing every last one of them."

I walked out of the bathroom and out the hotel room. I walked to the truck and back and then back to the truck again. By the time I had made that little trip four more times, she had joined me. Hair wet and in a set of clean clothes with more dirty clothes in her hand. I watched as she placed the dirty clothes in the back with the others and climbed into the front, her back stiff.

I climbed into the driver's seat and started the truck. I spoke before I backed out. I had to. "I'm sorry I walked in on you in the bathroom. I had no right. I am also sorry that I gawked at you like a teenage boy. You're beautiful, Sweetheart and although it's no excuse, I just couldn't help myself."

She just nodded, her cheeks still pink from earlier.

So I took a deep breath and forged on. "I am however not sorry that I saw the bruises. I now know what kind of sick and twisted bastard I'm going to be facing and it will happen." I stopped talking as she looked at me in even more surprise than before.

I reached out and slowly cupped her cheek in the palm of my hand. For the first time, she didn't flinch. I smiled softly. "For the first twenty years of your life, you've been fighting this battle by yourself. Not anymore, baby. You will no longer be fighting alone. You've finally got back up."

And for the first time since I met her, she gave me a small smile.

And everything changed.


End file.
